How to Make a Smoothie

By tbspSusanFebruary 18, 2011

Pinterest

0

Fave

0

Email

0

Facebook

0

Pinterest

0

Fave

0

Facebook

0

Email

0

Why spend five bucks for a smoothie when you can make one quickly and easily at home with your blender?

The best thing about smoothies, other than being really healthy, is once you have a formula down, you can mix and match at will to create new smoothie combinations. You already know strawberry-banana in a creamy yogurt base is good, but have you thought about blueberry-kiwi in soymilk with protein powder? Or mango with pineapple juice and coconut?

But I'm getting ahead of myself. First we need to learn the formula for how to make a smoothie. It's not rocket science, but it is sort of like quantum theory in that which ingredients you use depend on what's in the fridge/freezer/cupboard at the exact moment you're standing in front of it.

Base Elements for Smoothies

Fruit (Fr)

Yogurt or liquid (Yo)

Extra stuff (Ex)

The Base Recipe

(1 part Fr) + (1 part Yo) + (as much Ex as you like) = 1 dang good smoothie

Choose your favorite fruit, or a combination. Softer and frozen fruits work best, like strawberries, blueberries, bananas, mango, or melon. If you'd like to use a hard fruit like an apple, you'd better have one of those super-fancy juicers or plan on having a lumpy smoothie.

As for liquid, nothing beats some plain yogurt. It instantly makes your smoothie nice and thick without having to mess with ice cubes. Other good mixers are milk, soy milk, plain old water, or juice. Remember, juice is loaded with sugar, so keep that in mind when concocting your brew.

With extra stuff, the sky's the limit. Every time I add protein powder to my smoothie, I visualize myself with six-pack abs. As you may have already guessed, I always add protein powder. Ground flax seed or wheat germ is another super-healthy add-in for smoothies. Honey will help sweeten things up if necessary, and try new flavors like peanut butter (peanut butter-banana smoothies, anyone?) or even tahini (like peanut butter, but made from sesame seeds).